from anywhere in the world, oreilly@foxnews.com, anytime, if you wish to opine. and word of the day, do not be owsequious. and remember, the spipipipipipi

♪ >> good morning. i am heather childers. >> i am patti ann browne. it is tuesday february 26th. thank you for watching "fox & friends first". >> tame now for the top 5@5:00. police issued a warrant for lamar harris. he is identified as the prime suspect? the shooting and fiery crash that killed 3 people on the vegas strip. he is armed and dangerous. >> oscar pistorius telling authorities he wants to run but the spokesperson denying he has any immediate plans to return to the track. pistorius is now staying at his

uncle's home while he awaits trial in the shating death of his girlfriend reeva steenkamp. a developing story overnight israel coming under attack for the first time since a cease fire last september. gaza militants fire add rocket into southern israel. roads were damaged but luck ill will he no one was hurt. if at first you don't succeed try again. in a few hours democratic controlled senate will once again hold a vote on defense secretary nominee chuck hagel. he failed to meet the 60 vote threshold earlier this month amid widespread concerns about his record. it was the first time the sen that the successfully filibustered a tab net nominee. a final vote will be held tomorrow if hagel reaches 60 votes. >> scientists think life could survive on mars even today.

new research finds microbes can survive in extremely cold and dry places like mars. there is more and more evidence from the curiosity rover that water may flow in certain parts of mars in warmer months. they think it comes up under ground and flows down slopes and disappears again during winter months. that is your 5@5:00. >> it is a 1-2 punch for the midwest and the central plains now digging out from another massive winter storm. >> can't catch a break. ainsley earhardt joins us with details on this extreme weather. >> good morning operative word. another storm. the nation's heartland hit hard by the second blizzard in less than a week. the storm being blamed for two death that is knocked out power for thousands in oklahoma and texas. it moved in as record breaking

totals. 19 inches fell three inches short of the record. crews had to help dozens of drivers on the highways. 100 vehicles were hit on interstate 27 in lubbocks. >> even after the snowfall is over we could have what is defined as a ground blizzard feels like things are coming down even though the actual precipitation has ended. >> two people have died so far one in oklahoma after the roof of a house collapsed another in kansas when a driver slid off the road and his suv flipped over. heather, patti ann? >> thank you, ainsley. for the latest on where this storm is headed next let's go to

maria molina. >> dangerous storm system. it has snow, blizzard conditions occurring across portions of the central plains and a warm sector with possible tornadoes. i want to start with the snow. snow is coming down across sections of oklahoma, kansas, missouri, iowa. we are talking about a foot of snow reported on the ground in some of these places and still expecting the snow to continue to pile up. you will be seeing some of the snowfall as we head into later on today. we could be looking at 6 inches possibly more not just chicago but areas across the midwest. we have winter storm warnings in effect. blizzard warnings across north central sections of oklahoma. it will continue to prolong the blizzard conditions. you will be looking at significant snowfall starting as early as tomorrow. snow across chicago later today rain in new york city as we head into tonight.

i want to continue with severe weather. we had a tornado warning in northeastern franklin county and southeastern liberty county. there could be a tornado on the ground and national weather service detected one is developing and wind gusts at 77 miles per hour was clocked with the storm. it will effect northern florida. >> straight line winds can be more dangerous. fthree-days away from when the sequestor will go into effect. president obama is heading out on the road sentencing in washington to try to reach a deal. kelly wright is live in washington bright and early this morning with more on that. good morning, kelly. >> hope you are doing well.

the president is scheduled to travel tol new port news, virginia today to discuss how the seek quest trags might impact jobs. while he is taking it on the road to the american people republican leaders are asking the president to stay in washington and meet with congressional members. >> the president opposed this sequester. he is far more interested in holding campaign rallies than he is urging senate democrats to actually pass a plan. we will put it this way. we know there are smarter ways to cut spending and continue to grow our economy. that's why republicans have acted twice as kathy says to replace the is he queseek ques . >> he has no plans to meet with republican or democratic leaders this week. they are no loussiclose tore ge deal which would avoid sec

questionsstration. president obama met with the nation's governors at the white house he outlined how it maim pact jobs in their stat sequestration>> hundreds of thousands will lose access to primary care. >> the president is trying to scare the public. >> now is the time to cut spending. it can be done without jeopardizing the economy and critical services. the president needs to stop campaigning stop trying to scare the american people and stop trying to scare states. >> at this point republican and democratic leaders and the president seem to be locked in a blame game rather than finding a solution to this.

heather? >> kelly rice. thank you kelly. we are going to stay with the sequestration and take a look at who is talking. that's what rand paul is talking about this morning. >> senator paul focused on the spending problem facing this country and what it means for our future. >> you know what from us straights me? the average wealth of the average american in the last five years has gone down 22 percent. and everybody out there watching this program for the most part has had to make decisions to cut spending. we are going to spend as much this year pretty much that we spent last year. the president is scaring the living day lights out of the country. why can't we keep the budget the same if we can't cut this little bit out and this is really cut in the rate of increase i worry will we ever move forward? are we really destined for bankruptcy if we can't cut the rate of growth. that's what we are talking about

over ten years the 1.2 trillion in cuts actually allows the budget to grow over ten years. >> well the conversation on spending didn't just end there. things got very tense last night when sean hannity went head to head with democratic congressman george meek. >> number one, when the republicans were in control that's when we had all of this -- >> no, no, no. i am looking at today. is that wrong to steal from our kid's piggy banks, i am asking. >> we are not stealing from the kid's piggy banks. we got us a couple wars we shouldn't have been we have to pay for the wars. >> obama gaye us 16 trillion in debt. >> what we need to do, sean, we need to make sure everybody in america pays -- has their fair share. >> finish your sentence for you. >> do we need to cut spending?

absolutely. do we need to raise revenue? absolutely. there's a new poll. 76 percent of americans, democrats and republicans agree with that. >> okay. >> well yesterday state governors met with the president to discuss the sequestration. jan brewer was there. we will hear from her about that meeting later in the show. >> and it's time to brew on this. here's what we would like you to brew on today. children in massachusetts are going home with letters for their parents but not about their grades or their behavior it's about their weight. >> the letters they are part of a government initiative to tell parents their child's body mass index and give instructions on how to deal with weight issues has some parents outraged and kids upset. >> why are aren't we having nutritionists speak tokids. went to bed not feeling so great about themselves that night. >> you are either anorexic too

small or you get the obese letter meaning you are too big. you can't be just right. >> state and local law americas have joined the effort to fight the so-called fat letters. do you think these letters are just fine or over the line. send us your comments, please, tweet them to us at fox friends first or shoot us an e-mail at fox friend first@foxnews.com. we will read them later in the show. 11 after the top of the hour. mother nature destroyed the jersey shore. now environmentalists are blocking it from being rebuilt because they say it will hurt the environment. >> do you have the same problem millions of americans have? what you may have too much of coming up.

>> one jersey shore town they plan to use tropical rain fer rest wood to replace the boardwalk. they are vowing a tourist cease boyco boycott. the wood was harvested responsibly and already paid for. >> the white house will host a high stakes meeting hours from now on immigration reform. mccain and graham are part of a bipartisan group of men. >> high school dropouts are

causing loss of money in revenue. increasing graduation rates states would bring in enough extra taxes to turn around the struggling budget. >> if you are plan to go use your tax refund to treat yourself you are one of the few. most people are using it for other things this year. >> 54 percent of americans expect to get a tax refund and 24 percent say they are going to owe money to the government. that according to bank rate.com. of those americans receiving a refund check this is how they plan to spend it. 30 percent will pay down debt. 28 percent will save it or invest it. 26 percent will put it toward necessities like food or the utility bills. only 7 percent are splurging on a vacation or a shopping spree or something silly. that is bad for the economy,

right? as for the quarter of americans who are expected to pay it down aren't prepared for the added expense. the national retail federation as well. we are becoming more financially responsible which is a good thing getting our financial selfs in order. >> it is bad for the economy but it is good people are trying to save or dig out of debt. that leads us to the next story which is people aren't doing enough to saving or digging out of debt. >> when the cost of living is going up but your paycheck is not it is easy to skimp on the fund. only 55 percent of americans have more in those emergency savings than they have in credit card debt that. means nearly half of americans have more debt than savings. >> and the trend doesn't get much better with americans with higher salaries. two-thirds of folks making 75,000 a year have more savings than credit card debt.

>> lauren simonetti, fox business network. thank you. >> good to see you. 18 after the hour. next on the rundown we all need more sleep. doctors say just one week of bad sleep could come with some serious health risks. they are an iconic duo batman and robin with big changes. it might have batman flying solo. a look at the gas prices the new national afrverage 3.78. that's unchanged from yesterday.

>> today marks the 20 lts anniversary of the 923 worlds trade certainty bombing where a group of terrorists detonated a car bomb in the twin towers that killed 6 people and injured thousands more. coming up peter johnson jr. will be live in lower manhattan. >> the committee is reportedly closing the probe into zero dark 30. interrogation techniques helped find osama bin laden. cia workers say they only gave advice on development of the film's character. one week of bad sleep could increase your risk of diabetes obesity and heart disease. >> they looked at blood samples of 26 patients half had fewer

than 7 hours a sleep the other had 10 hours or more. some genes while replenishing our bodies switched off in those not getting enough sleep. >> how about 3 or 4. >> what you do on the internet says a lot about you there are growing concerns what you click on in the privacy of your own home not so private any more. >> founding fathers could not image google. but how they share private information with law foreignsment. >> since 2010 we have seen 136 percent increase in government quest to user data on google. >> a google lawyer who says in 2012 alone the company received over 13,000 requests from government agencies to search through the user data for privacy advocates those requests fly in the face of the 4th

amendment which says quote the right of the people to be secured in the person houses papers and effects for unfavorable searchs and seizures. >> modern day protections similar to the ones we had for mail that goes through the post office. what i think we all want is a limit on fishing expedition. >> the on-line protections are weak. 60 percent of user data are through subpoenas. it requires snoefrn warrant nor a court order. 22 percent of the government searchs required warrants and only 10 percent required court orders. >> there are circumstances in which we push back as a law abiding company we have to provide that data. >> many agree they are bound by an outdated law the communications privacy act it was passed in 1986 before most

americans even had internet. under ecpa e-mail scored on a server fore more than 6 months is considered abandoned. some charge google passively accepted law enforcement search request at the same time it has been a major supporter and contributor to the observe b-- obama 2012 campaign. doug mckel way fox news. the time now is 25 after the top of the hour. coming up did the united states postal service know lance armstrong was doping the entire time? the shocking allegations being made by the disgraced cyclist. that is straight ahead. >> plus is this the new 30? jane fonda may be backing up the latest claim by some scientists. first on this day in history in 1977 new kid in town by the eagles when the top of the music starts. stay there. this bible changed the world.

i'm kirk cameron, 400 years ago our forefathers risked their lives to bring this bible to the shores of america, because it contained the principles for economic liberty, political liberty and religious freedom. it was the first complete english translation, complete with chapters, numbered verses and over 300 thousand utterly unique study notes. it actually came out before the king james version, and because the government didn't authorize it, it was outlawed. but it was a bible by the people, for the people. the book that built america. and now for the first time in 400 years it's available again in a beautiful leather edition. i have one and i want you to have yours too. please visit genevabible.com and get your copy of this rare and historic version of god's word

today. order today, and get a free dvd of kirk cameron's latest film, monumental, the untold story of americaís beginnings. it's not a candy bar. 130 calories 7 grams of protein the new fiber one caramel nut protein bar. oh oo good morning everyone. you are watching "fox & friends first". >> it is tuesday february 26th. it is half past the top of the hour. that of course means it is time

for your 5@5:30. the top five stories making news for you at this hour. the trial for our nation's worst oil spill underway. it started with a whole lot of finger pointing. the government claims that bp put profits above safety and their negligence led to 11 deaths and oil spilling into the gulf. some survived with the rig company and cemented the well. if it is found neglect in the civil rile they could be fined $17 billion. the cyclist lance armstrong is planning to argue the government had known or should have known about his doping. the defense will argue there was enough evidence of doping on the u.s. coastal service team -- postal service team they should have known. the case is too old for the

government p to pursue. >> powers on iran's nuclear programs are set to start today in kazakhstan. negotiators are offering iran small sanctions relief in return for the nuclear program. expectations are low that the leader will budge during this round of negotiations. >> there are disturbing new details on the restaurant far in kansas city, missouri last week. the contractor suspected of causing a blast by hitting a natural gas line didn't have the permit for the work. they tried to file the paperwork a a day later. one person was killed 15 others injured. you can be quiet about your quarter life crisis. according to a new study on long

give vit 72 is the new 30. >> comber man researches looked at men with high expectancy rate and they say primitive cave men had the same odds of dying at 30 as swedish and japanese men have at dying at 72. >> fascinating. well extreme weather across the midsection of the united states the second blizzard in less than a week shutting down the central plains and the midwest. over a foot of snow dumped across texas and oklahoma piling on to the snow already there from last week's storm. thousands of people left in the dark. it is not over yet. maria molina is tracking it for us. >> good morning. the storm still on the move and expected to produce significant snowfall across missouri, illinois across the great lakes

and eventually into a new england region as early as tomorrow. this is a very large snow system. as far as snow totals you will be seeing a little bit of a mix. you will be accumulating 6 inches of snow up there and new york new england 6 inches of snow as we head into wednesday. we will have a large storm system expected to produce extreme weather out here across the eastern half of the country for several more days. the center is located across portions of oklahoma and arkansas and in missouri. snow coming down hard across kansas city. oklahoma even though the snow will be over with later on today the wind will be gusting over 30 miles per hour at times. that is why we have the blizzard

warning in effect. across southern portions of southeastern georgia and southern parts of south carolina severe weather will be possible tornadoes damaging wind gusts large hail and even blooding patti ann and heather. >> maria molina, thank you. >> in a few hours president obama will hit the road to warn about the impact of the looming sequestor. some say the president should stay in dc so a deal can be reached. good morning, doug. >> good morning. there are still questions about how all of this will mrau out. play out. the president is traveling to new port news virginia to talk specifically about the navy this is a region of the country that depends hevavily on the continuous flow of pentagon

cash. it will be painful. they are bracing for hits but otherwise relatively small cut in federal spending may be more dubious. janet nepal tano said the country would be less secure. >> i am not here to scare people. i am here to inform. and let people get a plan. they are going to see the impacts in their daily lives. >> maybe so but what if things like long airport lines ner really material lies? most people may not even notice the sequestor cut which could take weeks or months to kick in and many think the president is exaggerating. >> what's the president asking for? to take more from the taxpayer. if you can't handle a 2.3 percent cut what's going on. when you look at the numbers many go back to what the funding was in 2009 were planes not flying then?

were people not getting their first responders in? no. why is the president creating the hysteria when we should get government under control. >> why is he doing that if he is doing that? >> lost in the shuffle you look at everything coming up the cuts are on march 1st march 27th the continuing resolution that expiring. fast forward to may we are up against another debt ceiling debate. those may make the sequestor look like petty cash. >> the sequestor of course was president obama's idea the debt debate back in 2011. thank you rngs doug. yesterday the president met with governors to discuss what the is he quest tore cuts will mean for tear state. >> arizona governor jan brewer was among them. on the record she had this to say when asked does the president give any glimmer of hope?

>> told me and the rest of the governors over there that he wasn't running for election. his elections were behind him. he was going to do what he thought was right for the country and he wasn't going to look at polls like some politicians do because they are always looking forward to that next election. that gave me a chill. because that tells me he is going to do with it whatever he wants to do. he's big on executive orders and exercising his power. so i think it's going to be real scary time for america not hopeful. >> did any of the governor's grill him or go at him with questions? >> everybody was relatively polite thanking him for inviting us talking about certainly the sequestor. about the defense cuts. certainly we are all concerned about what that -- what effect that's going to have on our budget because they are going to have effects, real effects. >> at 7:15 this morning fox and friends will speak with the

governor of north carolina flien. he was also in the meeting with president obama yesterday. >> time now to entertain this and get ready to welcome back a bare faced ben affleck. the argo director shaved his beard hours after winning the oscar for best picture. a source said he did it to mark the end of this chapter in his life. >> take a look at this. brittany spears going over to the dark side. the singer debuted a new brunette do. what do you think? >> this is at elton john's os xaert this weekend. she also dared to do bare plenty of cleavage in her sparkling black gown there. so long robin? batman's boy wonder side kick will die in the new issue of the comic. come on. robin also known as damion wayne the son of bruce wayne killed off battling a brutal enemy.

now for your starting lineup the top sports stories multiple reports say the patriots have given tom brady a contract extension through 2017. it gives the patriots 8 million in extra capital next season. man tie te'o's took him 8 seconds to run the 40 feeter dash. they were looking for 4.75 or less. his time of 20th -- put him at 20th of the 26 linebackers. talk about making a big impression alabama offering a football scholarship to dylan moses of baton ruj, indiana. his face lit up when he broke the news. lsu also offered dillon a scholarship last summer. 39 after the hour still to come it sounds like the buy of a lifetime. one community giving away homes for free. on one condition. we will tell you what it is coming up.

>> you heard about the banning big sodas but the mayor may have his sights set on your home town.

>> welcome back. 43 after the top of the hour. what stories are making headlines for you overseas. up foefirst to sale has come un attack for the first time since the cease fire last november. go militants fired a rocket into israel. rubbi luckily no one was hurt. a hot air balloon ride exploded in mid air. search crews found survivors as they rushed to the hospital. >> lg chem received 142 million

in stimulus money from taxpayers. but a report reveals the chevy volt battery maker wrongly claimed and reimbursed for labor costs that had nothing to do with the grants. it included workers watching movies on the clock. a municipal court judge double as a stand up comic? they will ask the state supreme court to let him keep his other gig as a part-time comedian. he could not do both jobs because his jokes might appear biassed. he has always kept the two jobs separate. >> could see see a mortgage market without spreading mac and fannie mae. a new report says that's what we need to help the economy bounce back. diane mass can heed doe has more. >> issuing a number of recommendations to changes of federal housing policies including the end to government

backed lending as we know it. the report calls the housing america's future new direction for national policy aims to rebuild the private mortgage market and give home buyers and renters with a number of new policies and set of guidelines how to implement them. fannie mae and freddie mac replace them with a public garn tore which would guarantee mortgage payments without buying issue mortgage backed security. while it was necessary for the government to step in when the market collapsed five years ago the current role in housing is unsustainable at the moment. fanny, freddie report 90 percent of sij family mortgages and faa faces billions of dollars in losses. they also express the concern that credit worthy people are being denied housing due to overly strict underwriting standards. if they step back private

lenders will step in. these recommendations are go on to congress and the white house and will be keeping an eye out to see if they show up in any votes. thank you, diane. 46 after the top of the hour. still ahead talk about a wild ride. how did this pickup truck end up on the roof of a house? >> do you still need to plan your family's spring break? it's not too late. we have the best destinations and deals. first let's check in with steve doocy to see what's coming up on fox and friends. >> those places look fantastic. i will be watching. shortly the president of the united states no longer dissatisfied trying to scare people from washington, d.c. going on the road to talk about the square quest tore as we refer to it. you don't want to miss that. liberal group in north carolina says the best way to go after the republicans who run the

state house and governor's mansion let's hire private investigators. really? there are new cancer drugs there and coming on to the market faster and faster. are they safe? the medical a team reports for duty 12 minutes from now on fox friends right here on your channel for news.

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>> new york city mayor mike bloomberg wants the soda ban to go statewide. they should prohibit the drinks over 16 ounces. that's what the city will do at restaurants under their thumb. want a free house? if you become a homeowner it is

up to you to haul the house away. it must be moved the end of april so construction tips can begin on a new project on campus. if there are no takers the homes will be torn down. >> strange rates thank goodness is right around t-- spring brea is right around the corner. if you were on the hunt for a get away for yourself or for your family we have tips for you. joining us now is travelocity senior editor courtney scott. thank you for coming by. >> thank you for having me. >> everybody is in the mood to get away somewhere warm. you have some spring break booking tips or safety tips for us first? >> sure. you know first tip is if you are booking a spring break package that sounds too good to be true it probably is. you want to really look at the fine print look for blackout dates things that could affect your vacation in a negative way before you ever press buy. that's the first tip. the second is to really look for

a secure server. these are general tips for booking on-line. but you don't want to put your credit card info anywhere that is not safe. look for hgtps or http shop. go places where people aren't going. you really want to travel to sort of off the beaten path destinations. >> tips on scoring the best deals. there are good deals out there if you know where to look. >> first of all book a vacations package. this is an all inclusive way to get everything you want out of your vacations meals experiences activities, all of those things. >> and then the most popular spring break destination. >> well travelocity research shows the number one spring break destination for families domestic is orlando, florida. brought home a really great deal there. the number one international destination is cancun, mexico.

it is much more geared toward college students and people looking for a party. you can find great resorts outside of the hotel zone, too. >> you mentioned you have a good deal to tell us about. >> i do, yeah. walt disney world is always fantastic for families. this is a 25 percent off deal. it includes a flight out of dallas and five night stay departing on april 3rd returning monday april 8th and you are staying at the disney caribbean beach resort. it gives you that taste of the caribbean lifestyle in the heart of orlando and all of the villages represent or are kind of styled after different islands. really fun for adults and kids alike. once you are there you are going to want to of course hit the park. walt disney world has the largest expansion in history. i had a chance to check it out. it is fun for all ages. check out the new be our guest and enchanted spells.

>> i would like to go there without kids it sounds like fun. >> remind you have your childhood. a great get away. >> thank you so much courtney scott. appreciate it as always. >> can't wait for spring break. >> 54 after the top of the hour. still ahead he was walking 10 miles in the snow to interview for a low aipaying job how a chance encounter landed this teenager a much better job. we told you about this massachusetts school sending home letters to parents about their kids being fat. we asked you if you think the fat letters are just fine or over the line? we are reading your tweets and e-mails up next. i do a lot of research on angie's list before i do any projects on my own. at angie's list, you'll find reviews written by people just like you. i love my contractor, and i am so thankful to angie's list

for bringing us together. angie's list -- reviews you can trust.

>> two minutes till the top of the hour. le